A key Brexit campaigner has claimed Jeremy Corbyn "congratulated" him on the EU speech that led to a furious political row.

John Longworth quit the British Chambers of Commerce, which remained neutral during the referendum campaign, after he gave an address saying Britain's future could be "brighter" outside the EU.

Today the former director-general claimed the "first person" to praise his "fantastic" speech in March 2016 was none other than Jeremy Corbyn.

He told Sky News' Sophy Ridge: "When I made my fateful speech at the BCC which led me to resign and fight the campaign to leave, the first person to come up to me in the green room after I made my speech and congratulate me, shake my hand and say what a fantastic speech was Jeremy Corbyn .

Responding to the claim, a source close to the Labour leader told the Mirror: "Jeremy was being friendly and polite.

"He was not commenting on the content of the speech one way or the other."

John Longworth quit the British Chambers of Commerce and became a major Leave backer (Image: Sky News)

In his controversial speech says before he quit, Mr Longworth described the EU referendum as a choice between the "devil and the deep blue sea".

He told the group's annual conference that voters faced "undoubtedly a tough choice" of whether to stay in an "essentially unreformed EU".

He added: "The dynamism and resilience of the City of London and the UK business sector suggests to me that, in the long run, we have the capacity and capability to create a bright, if not brighter, economic future outside of the EU - just as we would have done had we had the opportunity to stay in a truly reformed Europe."